Bought it after a nice end of year bonus when I was on crap apprentice wages. Was meant to be the start of getting into XC racing as I'd just past my driving test. Unforunatley driving meant the fun of cars, nightclubs and women, and I ended up not doing much riding after that.

Heres the next MTB I bought and current bike.

Bought it Nov ish last year after starting riding again. Its pretty amazing to ride after coming from the Kona, but its in bits at the moment having the rear shock fixed.

Last edited by Deanj on Sat Feb 09, 2008 10:56 am, edited 1 time in total.

Richard! Thats awesome! Ive never used one before but I reckon it would be something else!

Graeme, I indeed read all about your Epic! Great build! Epic in fact! I was particularly interested by the steering damper. A pretty handy addition. I can related to your efforts entirly as my NRS was built up from the componets on my Yukon...but by that staged, the only things remaining from the Yukon was the handle bars and the frame. 'Upgrade itis'...annoying eh?

needsapush, like Graemes, your Epic is beautiful! Yours would be the newer M5 frame right? (I think the differences were that the M5 has more travel in the rear and can accept 100mm forks.) Although, thats said, I know a guy who built up an M4 frame with 130mm Rock Shox Revelations and some of the best components around. Beautiful never the less!
Like I said earlier, Ill post up mine when I can link the pictures through...

Here's my Gitane T1
and me riding it at the Scott 24 Hour
I got some air over this little lip on my next lap of the Red Loop - toolonglegs probably flew 10 metres!
Just for fun, here's our site at the Scott 24 Hour and a couple of views down the hill in front of it.

LuckyPierre, I cant believe you got an 8" rotor onto the back of that! Looks awesome! Bet your braking is up there!

leximack, I have the NRS-2 of that year....could you maybe compare it for me to the Anthem...how they both ride? The NRS isnt the most active set up in the world but it works...kinda quirky to the way the chain locks the rear...Giant's Maestro works the same too. I can imagine the Anthem would be a huge improvement though...the other question was regarding the seat tube on the NRS...whats with the tape? crack it?

Whitz End wrote:LuckyPierre, I cant believe you got an 8" rotor onto the back of that! Looks awesome! Bet your braking is up there!

leximack, I have the NRS-2 of that year....could you maybe compare it for me to the Anthem...how they both ride? The NRS isnt the most active set up in the world but it works...kinda quirky to the way the chain locks the rear...Giant's Maestro works the same too. I can imagine the Anthem would be a huge improvement though...the other question was regarding the seat tube on the NRS...whats with the tape? crack it?

Awesome bikes never the less...

Keep em comming!

i know what you mean about the "chain lock" my nrs does that also, the anthem does also but not as easily. The difference between the 2 is not alot but it does make a difference in the quality of the ride and also speed.
The Anthem is alot smoother over the bumps, the suspension sems to work a lot better than the nrs. The anthem is more comfortable over longer rides, ie less fatigue. Over a 10km xc course the anthem is approx 2mins faster, i have tested this at a few events. Brakes are better and have better feel, its a bit lighter (anthem 12kg, nrs 13kg) so it climbs better. Overall its not a huge deal better but it is slightly better in every area, hence its quicker and more comfortable. I only use the nrs now for towing a kiddie trailer and my wife uses it occasionally and also as a wet weather commuter sometimes, the sticky tape on the seat tube of the nrs is just to make the seat tube wider so a mudgurad can clamp properly to it, no cracks. If your thinking of upgrading do it, you wont regret it.
Don

Components wise, my NRS is very simialr to your Anthem...I use a full XT drivechain bar LX cranks, Avid Juicy Five brakes and the XM-317/DT hubs...so id probably be after just a frame...alas, the ol' Giant is going ace for now...got a camera to pay off which is a little pricey so bikes will take a back seat for a while.

I quite like the WTB Velociraptor front/rear tyre combo. Good directional control and the rear doesn't often spin on steep ascents. No idea how they go for rolling resistance, I suspect the rear would be a bit ordinary, but that's les important than outright grip where I ride.

j.r.hawkins, Im a big fan of the lefty! Always wanted to try it out...although I always fear it will break or something. Apparently stiffness/stength is equal to/better then standard forks! Fantastic bike you have there anyways!

Whitz End wrote:j.r.hawkins, Im a big fan of the lefty! Always wanted to try it out...although I always fear it will break or something. Apparently stiffness/stength is equal to/better then standard forks! Fantastic bike you have there anyways!

I get lots of funny looks, and once when I was a bit slow coming though a trail section 'cause I stuffed it and went back and did it over, my mate thought I'd had a stack. He took one look at the bike and said "Maaate! What happened to your FORK??:shock:"

They're unbeleivably smooth and supple. I love riding it offroad - it's like a Cadillac. Yet it's very stiff and responsive to steering inputs. I cringe a bit on the rare occacions I take the Mongoose off road now. Those skinny Cro-Mo stanchions flex so much by comparison I feel like I'm gonna break them off.

Whitz End wrote:LuckyPierre, I cant believe you got an 8" rotor onto the back of that! Looks awesome! Bet your braking is up there!

I didn't do anything - it came like that. The bike is a bit 'over-braked' for me - I'm a pretty gentle mtb rider. It is good to never need more than one finger on the brakes though.
I've had a bit of trouble getting the brakes settled. The rear can be noisy and vibrate under braking. but it's transient (like all good problems) so it's had to get sorted out. The 'put a business card each side of the rotor and cable tie the brakes hard on overnight' trick from the mtbr forum helped a lot, but it still pops up from time to time.

there really is nothing special about him,
apart from how much i enjoy taking him out whenever i can.
the only upgrade was replacing the welgo pedals
with candy crank brothers. i would like to upgrade him but
money is tight.

Well, now that im no longer considered 'spam' on this site, I guess I can post links now.

Here is my bicycles...

In the red corner, is my pride and joy, a 2003 Giant NRS. I bought the frame second hand and switched across all the parts from my Yukon. By that stage, the only 'stock' Yukon parts were just the bars, brakes and wheels. This has fallen back to just the bars. Shes currently in the wars at the moment. Leaky rear brake. Oh well...
The forks are an interesting feature. I got them cheap off eBay (2003 Manitou Black Comps) and they were a pretty good buy. Alas, they had their limitations. The stock seals were...crud..let alot of crap through. Plus, the fork is an older microlube type and isnt semi-bath lubricated. I intend on sealing them properly (ie. Enduro oil/wiper seals up the top and teflon tape/washers in the lowers to convert them across to semi-bath. )Should work out alright I think. Also, when my bike shop was cutting down the steerer to an acceptable height, they managed to knock the steerer right through the crowns...alas, this was rectified by the wonderful Grip Sport so yeah, not your average Blacks!

In the black corner is my Yukon. First real mountain bike, thing has seen it all from XC racing to some sweet decending as a 'All Mountain' hardtail. Its now reduced to just commuter duties but once I get the funding in order, it will be fitted with a chain guide and a set of RS Psylos for some real fun! I live in a fairly hilly area...Singlespeeding just wasnt for me.

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